Minsk, Nov 18 (IANS/TASS): Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov Tuesday said his country has no plan to implore the West to lift its unilateral sanctions imposed on Moscow.

Lavrov participated in the joint session of collegiums of Russian and Belarusian foreign ministries, during which they discussed the relations between Russia, Belarus and the European Union (EU).

"We stated that we are not seeking any confrontation, but we clearly confirmed that in our work we will be guided by the need to make our European partners understand that sanctions are a road to nowhere," he said.

Lavrov stressed that sanctions WERE "absolutely counterproductive".

"We will not be playing such games," the minister said.

The relationS between Russia and the West have deteriorated amid the Ukrainian crisis, as the US and the EU imposed economic sanctions against Russia, and Moscow responded with a ban on food imports from countries that sanctioned it.

The West accuses Russia of aiding militias in eastern Ukraine, while Moscow has repeatedly denied the claims condemning Kiev's operation as war against Ukraine's own people.